Cast & Blast
 

My 42 year-old son surprised me earlier this week by suggesting that he and I go to Montana next fall for a cast & blast experience. I used to do a fair bit of upland hunting and fly fishing but over the last 20 years golf has overtaken those passions. My son, who lives in Boston, has always been an avid fisherman – mostly ocean-related fishing – and never before exhibited any real interest in shooting. So, I jumped on this immediately and have been looking online at lots of lodges in Montana and other western states that offer what I think we want, i.e., fly fishing and upland bird hunting packages. We’re a package of thinking four nights and three days would work for us.

Have any of you done one of these cast & blast experiences and have any recommendations as to a lodge or outfitter, how many days are optimal or any other information that would be helpful in figuring out where and when to go? We are currently thinking September because of weather and because we want the hunting to be upland birds rather than ducks.

Thanks in advance for any information and suggestions that you might be able to provide.

There are two places I want to visit for such a thing before I die. Mid west somewhere (Montana or something like that) and Argentina. I don't have any input for you other than 'hold on to your wallet'.

Good luck in your search, it will be an awesome thing to do!

Yeah - none of the ones I have looked at were what I would call inexpensive!

my current half assed plan for such an event is researching public land for both and spending a week in hotels. at least one of my hunting buddies is interested in the idea so it's just a matter of actually planning it and taking the time off to go.

I've done my share of flyrodding public streams and am not really worried about that aspect. it's the pheasants/upland birds that I think will be more of a challenge to find. I'd be just as happy having a chicken parm at carraba's and retiring to a Hampton inn or local B&B after a day of casting and blasting as I would a big fancy lodge.

Check out Tegucigalpa, Honduras. Great dove hunting. You can shoot until your arm falls off, not sure about the fishing though.

Big problem I see is getting good fishing weather to overlap with open hunting seasons....

Maybe go for the fishing, and for the blast part find some sporting clays courses to shoot on?

We have a period in September and October that is the time for cast and blast. It was a good year this year and and a fairly long season, the later it gets the higher probability for weather. Which can be good or bad.

Call these Guys they are based here in Bozeman MT and offer this type of thing.

Yellow Dog Fly Fishing

They have lots of packages. Just tell them what you want. (They are good all over the world)

Grouse & Partridge Open Sept 1

Pheasants Open October 11 This year.

October 4 for ducks this year

Thanks for the info on Yellow Dog. I'll look into them.

Here I was hoping this involved dynamite in some way.